US Pilots: FCC Warns Hang Gliding Community

The following information was taken from the Amateur Radio Newsline Service, and is reposted here for general dissemination.

FCC licensing has recently streamlined and made it easier to get the Technician License (No Code). I hope everyone will take the opportunity to get a license and avoid the fines!

ENFORCEMENT: GLIDER PILOTS - GET A LICENSE

If you fly a hang glider and use ham radio to communicate, you had better have a ham radio license. If you don't you risk a heavy fine or other sanctions. So says the FCC's chief rules enforcer Riley Hollingsworth K4ZDH in a letter toa California glider port: 'We requested the Torey Pines Glider Port out in California, to warn its patrons that use of Amateur Radio equipment without a license could lead to amonetary penalty.

We had gotten information that numerous pilots out there of the hang gliders, were using Amateur Radio without licenses to communicate.' RileyHollingsworth, K4ZDH And Torey Pines might not be the only glider port to get such a letter. You may remember a few years ago Newsline reported that a similar activity was taking place with hang glider enthusiasts in New Mexico. According to sources in Albuquerque, the problem has not yet gone away and hams there continue to monitor the gliders and record the illegal glider pilot communications.(FCC)

Blue Skies

Steve Robeson, LPN (K4YZ) Dunlap, TN

In the Shadow of Henson's Gap Launch

The problem is that in/near any city the USHGA freqs 151.625/.925/.955 are in constant use by every rental car agency, chambermaid and (yes) septic tank pumping clown in the area. The HAM guys are neurotic about anyone infringing on their turf in any way. Here in Albuquerque many pilots do have licenses but some still do not. Those that don't will start using something in the 2 meter band that is designated for some obscure practice like bouncing weak signals off Uranus and the HAM guys track them down. The war continues. The no-code licensing will help eventually though. It's just an innate suspiciousness of Federal bureaucracy that keeps hang glider pilots out.

Bill Foley, KC5GBD just flew Torrey, live in Albuquerque

Hi Bill,

Yep...they can be, but they are no different than USHGA members who are adamandt about keeping non-rated pilot's off of 'thier' sites.

designated for some obscure practice like bouncing weak signals off Uranus and the HAM guys track them down.<

That's part of what I was trying to promote in anothr post I made a couple of weeks ago. There ARE people who like to experiment with moonbounce, and one five watt FM signal in the passband of thier receiver will wipe them out. Like my analogy of an F-15 blowing through your thermal.

And it's not that obscure anymore, either. With the development of very sensitive receivers for really low costs, lot's of folks are doing it worldwide.

glider pilots out.<

I have my own mistrust of the Feds too, Bill, but most radio regulations are created in such a way so as to prevent or limit inappropriate interactions like these. I agree that the no code ticket will help get a lot of folks (not just pilots) into the system, but when you consider the multiplicity of functions that a licensed person can enjoy vs unlicensed, I think you'd have to admit it's definitely a plus.

Blue Skies

Are these the same guys that won't fill out that census form? I can't help but wonder if any of those 'suspicious' pilots ever had to get a firearms permit or a security clearance..

Many Hams fear the 'CB effect'. This occurs when you allow anonymous users on a band. (It just occurred to me that the CB effect is very similar to the chat-room effect).. Once they realize that there are no repercussions for bad behavior, some people start jamming the frequency (not allowing others to share the band) and using a lot of profanity. For many years in Boston, trying to use a CB for communications was next to impossible. Nut-cases (with powerful RF amplifiers) would follow a conversation from channel to channel just to scream and curse at other people.. (Don't ask me why). On VHF, it's not very difficult for Hams to local a station by using directional antennas (and report it to the FCC). However if the station is mobile (or airborne) it's more difficult to pin-point him. If pilots start using the 2 meter band without ham call identification, in an area where it can be heard in a nearby city, it won't be long until some dipstick decides it would be fun to get on the air and broadcast his favorite rap-tunes to all those happy aviators. You would also see some Hams getting on flying frequencies just so they could yell at the unlicensed users. For the most part, Ham bands are well regulated, but there are always a few Hams around who think (mostly on short-wave frequencies) that they own a certain frequency and will yell at or jam anyone else who attempts to use their 'private frequency'. Those Hams get a notice from the FCC sooner or later.

IMO, Hams don't want the bands filled up with jamming and profanity. They saw it happen to the CB band and now they consider any unidentified transmission on Ham bands as the camels nose under the tent.

Rich<> (aka NJ1A)

Don't you find it incredible that there are hundreds, (maybe thousands) of people around the world who are sitting at computers right now writing virus programs just so they can screw up your PC?